Card games have entertained players across the world for hundreds of years and become an important part of many cultures. In this article, we’ll explore the basic rules and history of three of the most popular card games, and how they’ve stood the test of time.
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Blackjack
Blackjack is a banking card game where each player individually competes against the banker. Each card in the game is assigned a value, with cards two through to ten retaining their pip value (the number of pip symbols printed on the cards). However, jacks, kings and queens are each valued at 10, while an ace has a value of either one or eleven. The aim of the game is to score more than the banker, but to not exceed a total value of 21. If any player in the game, including the banker, scores more than 21, they go “bust” and lose the game.
The origins of blackjack
Blackjack is a modern take on the game of Twenty-one. It’s exact origin is unknown, but multiple sources credit the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes (of Don Quixote fame) for the first written record of the game. In Novelas Ejemplares, which was first published around 1601, he references a game called veintiuna, the Spanish word for 21. In the story he describes the aim and rules of the game, which have much in common with modern day blackjack.
However, David Parlett, a games scholar and historian, believes its origins are more closely connected to the game of 31, which gained popularity in the 15th century across Western Europe. This game is first mentioned in a sermon translated in 1464, in which a monk preached about the problems he believed were caused by gaming.
The growing popularity of blackjack’s precursor, Vingt-et-Un
Over the 18th century, blackjack’s precursor, Twenty-one (known as Vingt-et-Un in French) would continue to grow in France, thanks to its popularity with Napoleon and the Royal Court of King Louis XV.
The game continued to spread across Europe, with the Germans referring to the game by three additional names: Siebzehn und Vier (Seventeen and Four), Einundzwanzig (Twenty-One), and Hoppsen. The game also made its way to Britain, where it evolved into the game of Pontoon.
Twenty-one first appeared in the United States in the early 1800s. It’s likely that the game was introduced to the region by French colonists who had recently arrived in the US.
Modern blackjack
However, the original game of Twenty-one wasn’t that popular with American players. With the legalization of gambling in Nevada in 1931, gambling houses decided to add bonus payouts to help spice up the game.
One of these payouts was more commonly known as a blackjack. If a player had an ace of spades, and a jack of clubs or spades, they would receive a 10 to 1 payout. This incentive helped push the game to new heights, as well as cementing it in modern culture as blackjack, and not Twenty-one.
Today, blackjack, and its many variations, has become the most popular banking card game in both the traditional and online casinos.
Poker
Poker is a betting game in which players each take turns to assess the value of their hand in relation to the cards revealed by the dealer on the table. There are many values of hands, depending on the pip of the cards, their suit, and their combination.
A game takes place over multiple rounds, during which each player can choose to match or raise their bet, or fold if they believe their hand to be weak. At the end of each round, the dealer reveals one of three cards on the table.
A new round of betting starts with players again deciding to match or raise their bets, or to fold. This ends when the third card, also known as the river, is revealed. The remaining players reveal their cards, and the player with the highest value of cards wins.
A player can also win if all the other players fold at any point during the game. If the player wins the game this way, they do not have to reveal their cards.
The origins of poker
Much like blackjack, the exact origin of poker is unknown. One theory is that poker grew from the game of poque, a game that, just like blackjack, was introduced by French colonists who settled in the southern states of America.
The game of poque was itself influenced by the Spanish game primero. Primero, much like poker, is a betting game where players won or lost based on the value of their hand. However, it was played with a 40 card deck and the value of the cards and hands were quite different.
The seeds of a global phenomenon are planted
The boat crews who traveled the Mississippi helped spread the game across the United States. As it grew in popularity, the game is believed to have been adapted by English speakers to suit a 52 card deck, as well as being given the English name of poker. The game became a regular past-time of soldiers during the civil war, with both the northern and southern soldiers playing in-between battles. It also spread to frontier towns in the west as people joined in the gold rush in the mid-1800s.
The game also made its way to Britain, supposedly thanks to General Schenck, the ambassador to Britain, who either shared the rules with a member of the royal court, or with Queen Victoria herself.
Poker in the 20th century
Poker may have caught on quickly in the US and attained some level of popularity in Britain in the 19th century, but was only introduced to Europe in the 20th century. This was thanks to American soldiers who were sent to fight on behalf of the Allies during World War 1.
Moving to the latter half of the 20th century, poker saw an increase in interest in poker thanks to the World Series of Poker (WSOP). The first WSOP tournament took place in 1970 and helped drive interest in the game in casinos across the US, but it wasn’t until the Californian legalization in 1987, and the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act in 1988, that poker became more mainstream.
Poker continues to grow across the world, thanks to technology
However, poker’s growth doesn’t stop there. Many people didn’t originally take online poker seriously, but all of that changed when Chris Moneymaker qualified through an online poker room and went on to win WSOP 2003. Thanks to this win, the attitude towards online poker changed. Now there are numerous online casinos that allow you to play casino games and poker online, as well as dedicated online poker sites.
Baccarat
While it might not have the same reputation as blackjack or poker, Baccarat is still an incredibly popular card game. In Baccarat, players must place a bet on whether the banker or the player will achieve the closest score to nine, or if it will be a tie. It’s important to note that there are only ever two hands in the game, one for the player and one for the banker, but that multiple players can bet on the outcome.
Cards are scored according to their pip value, with an ace valued at one and a nine valued at nine. However, tens, jacks, queens, and kings have no value in Baccarat. If a player has a hand with an ace and a four, their score is five. If a player has a queen and a seven, the queen is ignored and the value of the player’s hand is totaled at seven.
The origins of Baccarat
Considering how long people have been playing card games for, it’s no surprise to hear that, again, little is known about the exact origins of Baccarat.
What is known is that the game became very popular during the 19th century amongst the French nobility. Baccarat, more commonly known as Chemin de fer, became more popular amongst the general French populace once casinos were legalized in specific locations in 1907.
The future of Baccarat
The game also spread to other parts of the world during the 20th century. In Britain, the game even became synonymous with the incredibly popular fictional spy, James Bond. Baccarat also gained popularity in South America, and North America. The United States version of Baccarat is believed to be highly influenced by the South American version of Baccarat known as Punto Banco.
Baccarat, unlike blackjack and poker, never managed to achieve the popularity of either of these games. However, the best online casinos with the best online casino games understand that the game has a dedicated, albeit niche, following, and ensure that Baccarat players can still enjoy the game online.
Las Vegas, the good Ol’ Sin City. With its spectacular hotels, casinos, non-stop parties, elegant restaurants and flashing lights makes it a vibrant city that has a lot to offer, and is surely one of a kind. Just as the saying goes, “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”. Seriously, where else in the world can you spot the Eiffel tower, Statue of Liberty, Colosseum, Taj Mahal and ride on gondolas all on the same street? It’s sort of like being able to see the entire world all in one trip. How cool is that! Whether you’re there to party hard with your friends, kick back with the family or hit up the casino floor, Vegas has it all.
Speaking of hitting up the casino floor, who hasn’t ever dreamed about hitting the jackpot and winning $1,000,000,000? Surely everyone has, or at least those who like to gamble at the casino. In Vegas, there are so many amazing casinos to play at. The beauty is that there are so many all on one strip, with each one offering its own style so that they can appeal to all walks of life. Inside these casinos of course, they offer a huge variety of games you can play from, such as slot machines and table games. Now, the question you might be asking yourself is, what are the most popular games? And that’s a very good question. In fact, we’ll be discussing in this article what the 7 most popular casino games in Las Vegas are.
Las Vegas Casino Games
When playing Las Vegas casino games, clearly we don’t always win, but as long as you’re having fun it doesn’t matter what the outcome is. In fact, that’s exactly what your attitude should be like before you step foot inside a casino. That way if you do end up losing, you can still walk out a happy camper. In case you’re wondering what the most popular games in Las Vegas are, below we’ve created a list of what we think are the 7 most popular casino games in Vegas.
- Poker
Although there’s different variations of poker out there, like Texas Holdem, traditional poker is a five card hand, with pretty much the same rankings you’ll find at any other poker table, such as the lowest hand being a simple high card, to the highest hand being a royal flush. The objective is to get the highest hand from all the other players.
- Craps
As you may know by now, playing craps creates a lot of excitement around the table and is a fast-paced game. If you’ve ever seen people playing before, you’ve probably witnessed a bunch of people shouting and cheering. For someone’s first time, it may look intimidating at first, but it’s actually a pretty simple game to learn. As soon as everyone has placed their bets, someone will throw the dice down the table in hopes to win.
- Black Jack
Blackjack, also known as 21, is a classic card game that’s been around the casino floors for a very long time. Most likely it’s one of the easiest games you’ll ever learn, and you can find it at pretty much any casino. It’s definitely one of the most popular, if not, the most popular table game played in the U.S. Two reasons why it’s so popular is because one: it’s so easy to play and two: there’s a very low house edge.
- Slot Machines
Slot Machines are another simple casino game to learn. If you’ve never played slots before, it may not look like much fun, but believe it or not, it’s one of the most popular casino games out there. Mainly because it’s easy to play and potential wins can be big, especially when playing a progressive jackpot. There’s also a huge variety of slot machines you can choose from, whether it’s a classic or video slot machine. They all have their own unique features and themes inside the game.
- Pai Gow Poker
If you’re familiar with the hit Chinese game Pai Gow and the classic American game of Poker, and you took those two games and combined them, you would probably end up with Pai Gow Poker, as it uses elements from both of those games. If you don’t know, it’s a game in which you play against the casino rather than other players. Each player is dealt seven cards and then needs to try and make the best five and two card poker hands, and the five card hand must be of higher value poker hand than the two card hand. If both your hands are better than the dealers, you win. If not, you lose. If you only one of your hands win, it’s a push.
List Of Gambling Card Games
- Roulette
Roulette is a fantastic game of chance in which players guess where the ball will drop on the spinning wheel. A game that first started in Paris, France back in the 17th century, but not too long after it gained much popularity and became a huge favorite worldwide. One of the reasons it’s so popular is because it’s so simple to play. Basically, all you have to do is pick a number you think the ball will land on after it’s done spinning on a wheel. Once you have selected and placed a bet on your numbers, the ball is dropped and the wheel is spun. If the ball lands on one of your numbers, you win.
- Keno
Card Games In A Casino
If you enjoy playing the lottery, there’s a high chance you’ll enjoy playing Keno as it’s also a lottery game. Just like your typical lotto card, in Keno you have a card numbered 1 – 80. Then you need to pick any 20 numbers listed on the card and make a bet. Afterwards, someone from the casino will start to randomly pick and call out 20 random numbers. The more numbers you hear from the announcer that are yours, the more you win.
Las Vegas Free Slots
If gambling at a land based casino with real money is not your thing, but you still enjoy playing casino games, there’s many Las Vegas free slots as well as other casino table games available online. On the other hand, aside from entertainment purposes, and if you just like to gamble at land based casinos, this is still a great alternative for you, especially if you want to get some practice in before gambling with real money. Speaking of which, at Caesars Casino online we offer well over 100 different video slot machines with a wide range of themes and exciting features. We also offer Classic Slots,Blackjack, Rouletteand Video Poker games, and it’s available for free, 24/7. Also, if you’re a Total Rewards member, you can link your account with our application and have the opportunity to earn TR credits. If you’re not a TR member, no problem, you can simply create a new account and earn credits.
Best Casino in Vegas
Another popular question many casino players ask is what’s the best casino in Vegas. Aside from the legendary Caesars Palace, there are so many casinos scattered all over Vegas, and that’s not even counting all the famous ones located on the strip. That being said, it’s really difficult to say which one is the all-time best, and really, it’s all about personal preference. And that’s a great thing, because there are so many casinos around the area with a big variety of themes. Whether you want to feel like you’re in Paris and play by the Eiffel Tower, or maybe you prefer to feel like you’re in Italy and want to play at the Venetian. Not matter what you’re after, you’ll be sure to find your favorite casino in Vegas.